Here’s the latest on Port Hope’s Walton Street reconstruction project

Another road closure on Walton Street is in the works to complete Phase 1 of Port Hope’s reconstruction project.

The Port Hope community has confirmed that Walton Street – from the church to Pine Street – will be closed from April 24th to May 12th.

“This closure will allow the contractor to complete the final layer of asphalt on the road and repair any deficiencies,” city officials said, noting that this work will mark “the completion of Phase 1” of the multi-million dollar reconstruction project .

Phase 1 involved the rebuilding of approximately 350 yards of Walton from Pine to Church Street. As previously reported, work focused on new asphalt, concrete curbs and sidewalks, water mains, plumbing and storm sewer work, and some tree planting in this residential area.

Staff have also confirmed that transit route A will be affected by this road closure. Instead, during the lockdown, the bus will turn north on Pine Street, continue west on Bruton Street and rejoin Julia Street, staff said. (See porthope.ca/transit for more information on transit.)

“We appreciate your patience as we complete Phase 1 of the Walton Street reconstruction project,” said staff. “This work is essential to improving our aging infrastructure and a great investment in the future of our downtown area.”

Next comes phase 2; However, in this phase, which was originally scheduled to start in April of this year, there were some changes in project schedules and the like. Due to supply chain delays and material shortages, the majority of construction work related to Phase 2, which affects downtown, has been postponed to 2024, the municipality confirmed in December 2022.

At the time, also in light of concerns expressed within the community, particularly downtown, the community also reassured area residents that further details, including a construction plan, would be announced once a construction contract was awarded and well before work began . A “comprehensive communication and engagement plan” with additional staff will be in place for the duration of the project at this point.

As previously reported, the main aim of the project is to address the growing deficiencies associated with aging underground infrastructure – some of which date back to the 1920s and 30s. The new infrastructure is said to last 75 to 100 years.

Several design options were also discussed during the last council period as the community saw this as an opportunity to also make some improvements and changes downtown while everything was being dug up. Some of the proposed changes focused on streetscapes, accessibility, pedestrian safety, space and connectivity, and green infrastructure improvements, to name a few.

But a majority of the council, after much back-and-forth and debate, ended up favoring a preferred “replace-as-is” design concept. In other words, this option focused more on the underground infrastructure needed.

Since that time, earlier this year the new council brought up some design options related to the intersection of Walton and Ontario streets, while also wanting to explore opportunities for green infrastructure. Staff are said to be working on finalizing detailed engineering drawings for Phase 2.

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